Co-sleeping

Has any of the wonderful mama's (or papa's) here done this? I never considered having her sleep in my bed (I've read a little bit about it, and the rolling over and squashing her in my sleep put me off), but now that she's here I want her next to me all the time. Not only because she's so cute and snuggly, but with the breastfeeding, and me worrying about her breathing, this seems like the best way to do it, I get more sleep and I'm more relaxed. We had bought a moses basket and we use it for the shorter naps during the day, it's mostly during the night she sleeps with us. And the plan is to keep her in our bed until she starts sleeping through the night, but my boyfriend is worried that transition will be difficult, and that we'll be stuck with a family bed for the next ten years (we watched Away We Go a few days ago). So do any of you have any experiences, stories or suggestions? Is co sleeping a terrible idea?

This is one of those hot-button debates that pits the Attachment Parenting crowd against the mainstream. However, every single study has shown co-sleeping to dramatically heighten the risk of accidental suffocation. In some US states lawsuits have actually been brought against parents for co-sleeping with an infant who died. Again, every objective study has shown that the safest place for a young infant is in her parents' room but with her own, safely cordoned off, sleeping space. It can be a crib, cradle, Moses basket, or attached co-sleeper, but babies should have very firm mattresses, no bedding other than a fitted sheet, and definitely no pillows or large adult bodies.

A cosleeeper is the best of all worlds. She is literally within arms reach at all times, making middle of the night breastfeeding or security checks effortless, but there is no increased risk of smothering.

The counter-arguments are usually anecdotal ("I co-slept with all of my children and they survived!") or full of faux-scientific BS about the baby being more relaxed, bonding better, synching her circadian rhythms, etc with a cosleeping parent. And mothers in particular always insist that their 'mama' instincts would prevent accidentally rolling over or throwing a cover/pillow on the baby. As someone who has done autopsies and routinely takes medic transport calls on SIDS babies (85% of 'SIDS' deaths are due to smothering, either accidental or intentional) I can assure you that's not true.

This is the kind of thing that's truly wonderful, snuggly and safe. It helps *you* sleep better, too, since there are no worries about her safety:

I co-slept with my son until he was about 2 - I was also mostly single during this time, so that made it easier to share my queen sized bed, lol. I personally love co-sleeping, especially if you are breastfeeding, it's just way easier, IMO. I know a lot of people do not approve,but I will be doing it again for sure! You can also just have her in the room with you if you are worried about rolling on top of her. My son slept in a pack-n-play when he didn't sleep in my bed with me, I never actually bought a crib. At this point, she could definitely sleep int he moses basket overnight in your room (it won't work once she can sit up and start getting around). Have you considered an arms-reach bassinet? It's basically a bassinet that attaches and acts as an extension of your bed. I never got around to buying one, but my mom had one with my sister and it was really nice.

I don't blame him for not wanting a"family bed" for 10 years, that's not something I would be interested in, either, but I think that co-sleeping for the first few years can be very beneficial and a good experience for everyone. Did we have issues with transitioning to his own bed? Sure, but it wasn't unbearable and it only took about a week and now he really prefers his own bed.

This is one of those hot-button debates that pits the Attachment Parenting crowd against the mainstream. However, every single study has shown co-sleeping to dramatically heighten the risk of accidental suffocation. In some US states lawsuits have actually been brought against parents for co-sleeping with an infant who died. Again, every objective study has shown that the safest place for a young infant is in her parents' room but with her own, safely cordoned off, sleeping space. It can be a crib, cradle, Moses basket, or attached co-sleeper, but babies should have very firm mattresses, no bedding other than a fitted sheet, and definitely no pillows or large adult bodies.

A cosleeeper is the best of all worlds. She is literally within arms reach at all times, making middle of the night breastfeeding or security checks effortless, but there is no increased risk of smothering.

The counter-arguments are usually anecdotal ("I co-slept with all of my children and they survived!") or full of faux-scientific BS about the baby being more relaxed, bonding better, synching her circadian rhythms, etc with a cosleeping parent. And mothers in particular always insist that their 'mama' instincts would prevent accidentally rolling over or throwing a cover/pillow on the baby. As someone who has done autopsies and routinely takes medic transport calls on SIDS babies (85% of 'SIDS' deaths are due to smothering, either accidental or intentional) I can assure you that's not true.

This is the kind of thing that's truly wonderful, snuggly and safe. It helps *you* sleep better, too, since there are no worries about her safety: